Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums General Tech Rear turn signals

I know newspeedmaster.com sells a kit that brings turn signals from the standard shoulder width distance apart in a little bit more but has anyone actually tried to just cut the extension bar that the lights are mounted on? That seems like a quick and easy job that wouldn't require much new hardware if at all, just wonderin all of your thoughts and opinions.

I think the bar is threaded on both ends. Its not as simple as cutting it shorter.

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I think the bar is threaded on both ends. Its not as simple as cutting it shorter.

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Yep. There are two problems.

1. Holding the shortened nipple while re-threading - You'll need a 'like' threaded reciever on the threaded end as a vise will mar it and you probably won't have room for the die anyway.
2. Not certain, but I think the threads are metric pipe - not US NPT or bolt NC/NF. Either way- unless you have access to dies, you'll need to determine what they are.

Yes, it's been done. Here's a thread from the old forum discussing quite a few options.

thanks for the info guys

Larryshep is the man for that.

Here's what I did, First I ordered a chrome spacer from JP Cycles. I ordered the 1 1/4 inch that has a 3/8 inside diameter. Went to home depot and bought two of the 1/8 pipe that were 3 inches long and 8 nuts to fit. You'll find them in the light parts area. Placed the light housing in a vice and I used rubber to protect the housings but you could use wood or something. Used the two nuts tightened them together as a jam nut and used a 14mm to take the stems out of the housing. You have to cut the wires so leave room to splice them back together. Put one end of the pipe into the housing used thread lock and used two of the nuts as a jam setup. Put the spacer on and then did the same on the other end. If your going to go with the electrical connection set up to have brake and running light also this is the way to go because you'll have room to get all the wires through the shaft.

It's not too hard, buy the $5 die at the hardware store. I described how to do it in detail here a year ago, try a search.

Booze, I shortened mine aand the hardest part was getting them unthreaded without scratching them. heat on the joint works great. Once I cut an end off I saved one end for threading back into the light. For the other end I drilled out to tap with an one eigth pipe tap. Then I went to the hardware store and bought [2] 1 inch long by one eighth inch lamp nipples and a couple of the slim nuts to fit. the nipples will thread into the tapped out stem, use locktite, and the other end into the license plate bracket with the nut holding it in then string the wires thru. If tapping is out of the question then just drill the shortened stem out and run a longer lamp nipple thru and use the nipple nuts on each end. they come in different lengths. use locktite. star washers under the nuts might help keep them from turning later on.


mike

Hey ,popcorn types faster.


mike

I started the post referenced by SalMaglie and thought I'd add a couple of pictures.





Note that I also did the running light conversion that was noted in the other thread.

Steven